Durian!
How the stinky yellow flesh of a fruit became the king of all fruits.
With its hard green shell and spiky thorns, one wouldn’t assume too much about this fruit especially from the stinky odor it gives out. For some years now its pungent, yellow, sticky flesh has been a hype and I can say it is for a good reason. Some people love it and some people don’t, some people think its aroma is sweet and some people think it’s unpleasant. Well either you love it or hate it we can all agree that this fruit evokes deep appreciation and mortification.
Its odor has been described by some as somewhere between rotten onions, smelly wet socks, turpentine and all the way to a rich custard highly flavored with almonds. As a durian connoisseur I have to say that the breed of the durian has everything to do with its taste.
Background
The island of Borneo is generally accepted as the original geographic origin and center of diversity of the genus Durio. It has been reported that Durio has about 27 recognized species. The island of Borneo has 19 indigenous or native species of Durio while the island of Sumatra has 7 native species. Peninsular Malaysia has 11 species. Myanmar has 2 recognized species indigenous to the country. It was also hypothesized that a land bridge connected Palawan in the Philippines with Borneo during the pleistocene era with D. zibethinus L. found occurring naturally on Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago as well as Palawan.
How its name came to be is quite an interesting topic. At the beginning of the 15th century, many famous European travelers called the durian with names such as “doriones”, “ durion”, “duryaoen”, “durean”, and “durioen”. There was no accurate descriptions of the durian then. The durian was very often confused with another green thorny fruit known as the soursop (Annona muricata). In 1741, a famous German botanist, G.E. Rumphius, published his famous book called “Herbarium Amboinense” which contains several pages devoted specifically to the plant which he called ‘durioen’ ( known nowadays as the common durian). Rumphius had detailed descriptions of the durian had contributed significantly to our current knowledge of this unique tropical fruit. He was accredited with creating the genus “Durio” and clearing the confusion between soursop and durian.
The durian tree can grow up to 120 ft (approximately 36.6 m).13 It has a straight trunk from which numerous horizontal branches extend. The bark of the tree is flaky and has shades of grey or reddish brown. Its leaves are simple and vary from a pale olive color to bronze green. Durian trees reach maturity between five and seven years, and produce fruits twice a year. Flowers are borne only for a day, during which they are pollinated and drop off. The melon-shaped fruit then takes approximately three months to ripen, before falling and splitting on the ground. This attracts many forms of wildlife to eat the fruit and then disperse the seeds, thus propagating the fruit. Propagation can also be achieved with grafting and budding. Typically, the quality of the durian fruit is best when the tree is 30 to 60 years old.
Why has it gone viral over the recent years?
I would like to describe this fruit as akin to wine. To properly enjoy it you need to appraise it and you need to understand its flavor, depth, and type. Is it more savory, bitter, sweet or creamy?
It has gone viral globally because of tourists coming over to Southeast Asia discovering this delight but locals have been enjoying it for as long as they can remember. There are so many products that are made from durian and it had always become a hit. Did you know that there is Durian Whisky? And other products such as:
Dessert Products — Cakes, Jams, Ice cream and Pastries
Snacks — Biscuits, Buns, Chocolates, Confectionary (Candy), Crackers and Chips
Beverages — Milk, Tea, Coffee and Juice
New products are being developed all the time and major global companies like McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Nestle, Cadbury, F&N and Lays have released products to capture the growing market.
Durian has many health benefits such as:
- Helps to reduce constipation, bloating and indigestion
- Strengthens cardiovascular health
- Provides relief from insomnia
- Helps to reduce cholesterol
- Helps to prevent cancer and anemia
- Reduces the risk of infertility in men and women
- Boosts bone health and prevent osteoporosis
- Anti-aging
It contains many vitamins such as Vitamin C, folic acid, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, B6 and vitamin A.
The fruit holds important minerals such as potassium, iron, calcium, magnesium, sodium, zinc and phosphorus. It also contains nutrients such as phytonutrients, water, protein and dietary fats. But beware as durian is high in calories and there are some foods you must not eat with or after consuming durian.
How much does durian cost?
$24 (USD) dollars or $30 (AUD) can buy you the following Durians:
- 2 x Musang King
- 3 x Udang Merah
- 4 x Hor Lor, Durian XO, Teka, Golden Phoenix
- 5 x D1, D18, D24
- 25 x Durian Kampung
Durian is a fascination and an acquired taste for some people. It can be pricey but this delicacy would always be treasured. As a true durian lover it will always be my favorite guilty pleasure.
